The Shur'tugal War
by SamAxe
Summary: The Varden have usurped the throne from Galbatorix, and Eragon has left Alagaësia. The riders are returning, and the Imperial army on the run. Along with this a new evil has risen. A evil which can sweep the peace from the land, and plunge the world into eternal darkness. But there is also a new hope which may just save it all.. Rated T for violence, and language.
1. Prologue

**Hello FanFiction people. First off thank you for giving this story a chance. I appreciate that. Also, if you like what you read please review, favorite, or follow. Thank you. This is my second story, and I'm still writing the first one so uploads might be slow. On with the story!**

**Prologue**

A sword whistles through the air at a lightning fast pace. The Imperial officer barely parries the blow with his own blade. He thrusts his sword at the armored soldier that stood in front of him, but stumbled over a bleeding body causing his strike to go awry. _"Shit!" _The officer thought as the other soldier raised his sword; a smirk of triumphant on his face. A curved blade suddenly erupted from his chest, blood spurting from the wound as a grizzled soldier tears his blade free. He grasps the captain's forearm, and pulls him to his feet. A battle raged around them; tents were burning, bodies littered the ground, and what was left of the meager Old Empire platoon was being scattered.

"Glad I could be of help Cap'." The young soldier said with a grin hunkering down beside his shield with the officer.

"Always appreciated, Beni." The older captain replied with a chuckle also prepping to go another round.

"Any idea what in god's name is going on, or who these bastards are?" Beni asked as two more of the unmarked soldiers started to charge them.

What had happened that night? The captain tried to scrounge up the dim memories from earlier that night. These Imperialists had set up camp for the night beside a small brook next to a grove of trees earlier that afternoon. The other soldiers and the old officer had settled down for the night except 3 watchmen. It had to be at least 3, maybe 4 hours before they were awoken by the a shout. These unidentified soldiers had just come out of nowhere, and ambushed the sleeping platoon. No one knew who they were, but everyone was thinking the same thing. The Varden. Those filthy rebels had marched across Alagaësia burning, and plundering. Their accursed Rider had even killed the great king, and the army was scattered. But there was a rumor spreading that he had actually left... Whether it was true, or not was still unsure. The two soldiers reached the Imperials as the Captain relived these thoughts.

One of them struck with a long spear jabbing at his ribs. The officer blocked the attack with his sword; knocking the hilt down so the tip struck the ground. The other soldier dived at Beni brandishing a war ax, and a small dagger. Beni easily clubbed the soldier in the ribs with his shield; sending him reeling back. But that maneuver left him exposed for a split second, and the other soldier lifted his spear and stabbed in the side of his stomach. The blade impacted sending the young Imperial to the ground, but didn't punch through his mail and leather armor. The officer gave a growl of rage, and swung his sword at the soldier. The blade struck the side of the soldier's face slashing through his right cheek. The soldier howled through the mangled flesh, and dropped his spear clutching at his ruined face. The captain dispatched him with a few quick stabs to the chest. He turned to see Beni on his feet; his sword bloodied, and the other soldier laying on the ground missing a chunk arm and a gaping hole in his side. Beni gave him a look of success; grinning all the while. He paused when he saw a look of horror in the old captain's eyes.

A blade ripped through his throat; Beni's head only staying on by a thread of flesh, and sinew. The soldier that Beni had felled earlier; the one that had almost killed the captain now stood victorious over Beni's fallen corpse. The captain looked him over stunned; the wound in his chest wasn't bleeding anymore. _"They can't feel pain!" _The old officer thought, but then realized he was wrong. That soldier had died, and now he was fine. The wound on his chest had stitched itself back together! Like magic, but this man was no spellcaster nor has one made their presence known. A laugh split the air as the soldier with a formerly ruined face rose. He cackled as he felt his face; which was whole again. "What the hell?!" The captain shouted out loud. Just then a horn sounded along with dozens of shouts.

"For the Varden!" Screamed a swordsman, and many others as they rushed into the enemy's camp. They arrived upon a scene of confusion, and death. An unmarked soldier rushed him, but was cut down by a bolt from a crossbow.

"Come on Sergio." The crossbow wielding man said to the swordsman. "That could've been dangerous." He said with a friendly grin. The swordsman responded with a laugh before charging back into the fray along his comrades. Soldiers fought each other in complete confusion. As far as Sergio could tell the Empire was very out of practice, but why they were up and what had happened was a mystery. He didn't have long to dwell on it because of the close quarters combat that raged around him.

"_The Varden?" _The captain thought as both he, and the seemingly revived soldier. The old man recovered first, and smashed the rim of his shield into the man's jaw. The formerly ruined face soldier picked up a fallen sword, and lunged. The officer barely turned in time to catch the blade on his shield. The other soldier tore off his dented helm, and engaged in the fight. The three then began a deadly dance of steel, and blood. It ended when a sword blazed through the air cutting off one of the unmarked soldiers' heads. The captain took advantage of the brief distraction, and stabbed the second one through the chest. He ripped his sword out, and hacked his head off with several thwacks. A Varden soldier stood in front of him; panting, covered in gore, and obviously confused.

"You just killed your own men!" Sergio shouted at the Imperial officer. He now had no idea what was going on. All three of the factions had suffered severe casualties, but the unidentifieds seemed to be pressing the hardest, and their numbers seemed to be double what they originally saw.

"No! These are your guys!" The captain shouted over the din.

"Wait, wait. These aren't your soldiers?" Sergio inquired staying vigilant in case it was a trap of some sort.

"No. We thought they were you rebels..." The captain said before pausing. "They seem to be healing, or something.." He said sounding beaten.

"What?! Are you sure they just don't feel pain?"

"Yes. We are the people who thought of that first... They are very different.. They recover from wounds without a scratch!" He responded picking up a spear from the fallen soldier.

"Watch out!" He shouted as another unmarked soldier snuck up behind the Varden swordsman. Sergio whirled around as a mace glanced off his shoulder with a loud crack. He collapsed with a yelp, and the captain quickly crossed the distance to poke the soldier in the sternum with the spear. The soldier jumped back so the spear didn't sink all the way into his chest. Sergio got to his feet; his shield arm hanging limply at his side. The captain swung the spear trying to knock the soldiers ankles out from under him. He danced out of the way, and swung his mace at the officer. The blow was deflected by his shield. Sergio jabbed the soldier in the kidney with his sword. A fresh puddle of blood spread on the ground. The captain smashed the spear's tip through the soldier's mail; piercing his stomach and throwing him to the ground. The soldier lay still. "Cut off his head, or he'll get back up." The captain said leaning over catching his breath. Sergio carried out the grizzly deed.

He walked a few paces away from the Imperial officer; huffing, trying to sort out what was going on. "Do they have a spellcaster with them?" Sergio asked.

"I don't kno-" The captain started to respond, but was caught off by a third voice.

"Not exactly." It said, and the captain whirled around to see a hooded man. The man wore no markings besides a small silver necklace that dangled from his neck. The symbol on it was a small upside-down V-shaped marking with a serpent curled around one side, and a scorpion on the other leg of the V. The Imperialist gave a roar, and scythed his spear trying to disembowel the man.

"Deyja." The cloaked man said calmly. The captain's eyes rolled into the back of his skull, and he collapsed. Sergio stared in shock, and horror. The man's brilliant white teeth could be seen from beneath the hood. He stretched his hand out. "Brisingr." He said with a smarmy grin as a maw of white fire engulfed the entire camp. camp.


	2. The Deserter

**Hello again peoples. Thank you for your support, and everything; sorry about not uploading in a while. This story will revolve around 4 central main characters all of which are my OC's. First real chapter so let's get started.**

**The Deserter**

Darius rolled over in his small tattered wool blanket. He blinked to clear his vision from last nights restless sleep. He looked over to ensure that his dark brown horse was still tied to the small tree in the small clearing where they had made camp last night. After assuring himself that all was well Darius stood up, and ran his hands through his short blonde hair. "What to do now...?" He asked talking out loud though no one was around to hear. The young man, not even 23 summers old, dragged himself over to a small brook that ran off of a large river a few yards away from his camp. Darius' wiry frame hurt from almost a week of hard riding. He cupped a handful of the icy water, and splashed it on his face. He shivered as the frigid liquid turned his white skin even paler. He washed as much of his exposed skin as he could without having to remove any clothing due to the chilling cold.

Darius stared at his reflection for a while afterward; just thinking. His eyes drifted over his torn uniform. The thin gold-thread etched flame was still visible on his tunic despite his best efforts to hide it without trashing the shirt. For it was the only clothes that he had with him. He grimaced at the sight of it... It had been almost an entire year since he had fled the servitude of Galbatorix's army. After watching the elves storm the battlements at Gil'ead; the soldier had lost heart, and fled with a small band of others. They had all been captured, turned back, or went their separate way by now. It had been a shameful thing to do, but Darius was convinced if he hadn't he would be dead in the capital like thousands of others. He had no place to go so he had spent the large part of his time evading both sides of the war. _"What's left of the Empire would surely hang me, and any Varden would cut me down once they saw my uniform."_ He took note of how thin he had gotten over the course of his wanderings, and short skirmishes with bandits and even a couple of town guards. _"Next town over I'm going to have to stop, and get some food." _Darius thought.

He meandered back to his steed. The horse whinnied when it saw him coming. Even over the past week of riding the stolen horse had still not gotten used to Darius' presence. He patted it on the side to calm it's nerves. He removed a wedge of cheese, and some bread from one of the saddle bags. Crouching by his fire he ate his meager meal, and planned his next move. He reached down into the pockets of his trousers to pull out a poorly kept map. Darius conjured up what he had down over the past couple weeks that might give him any idea where he was. It took him a while, but he realized the lake he had passed earlier on had been Isenstar and the river was the Ninor River. That left two towns aside from Gil'ead within a rough days ride; Daret and Yazuac. Now, as almost everyone in the lower echelons of the old Empire knows Yazuac has been abandoned every since that Urgal attack. The town was even rumored to be haunted with the spirits who had been slaughtered there; of course such talk was pure fantasy but for some reason all who ventured near the ghost town never returned. And of course you cannot buy supplies in a burned out husk of a village. "So, Daret it is." Darius muttered aloud to the skittish mare.

**Outskirts of Daret**

**Sunset**

Darius had already set up his dwindling supplies in a small ring that made up his camp. Tomorrow he was going to enter the town to do some trading; the stench of fish drifted over from the docks. Some fishermen scurried about their small boats unloading the last catch of the day; the market was totally dark except the small butcher shops that continually chopped fish even throughout the night. He cringed his nose at the foul odor, and began preparing for the long night. Darius bustled about: tying about the horse, stocking up firewood, and eating a small meal. Wanting to be asleep for the coldest parts of the night. The young man slid into his wool blanket; having no idea that what would happen within the next few hours would change the face of Alagaësia forever.

**Midnight**

Darius jolted awake, and looked around nervously. He had no idea why he had awoken so abruptly, but something seemed very, very off. The skinny male yanked off his black blanket, and pulled out a chipped short sword. The blade was just a standard infantry sword, that had fallen into disrepair after a few weeks without a proper cleaning. As his eyes darted about nothing seemed wrong... All his supplies were fine. Nothing was near the camp. The town was totally black. The mare was still tied to the-. _"The town is totally dark." _The thought jumped to the front of his mind. _"Those shops should still be running." _Darius started to panic; he started to stuff his things into his saddle bags. He then smacked his foot into a cooking pot that he would've been able to see... "The moon." He said aloud looking up at the sky. Ever single light in the sky was gone; an omnipresent blackness hovered over the world. He gulped and silently cursed, "What the hell is going on?" Darius thought again out loud.

_**Thud. Thud. Thud. **_A noise seemed to be coming through the black.. A noise that seemed to ring with death. _**Thud. Thud. **_The dull airy thud seemed to be coming from the east; up high. Darius stood in his clearing in complete shock. _**Thud. Thud.**_ **Crash! **A massive figure smashed into the ground not 20 feet from the frightened boy. Its bat-like wings spread out, and somehow glittered a dark oily color in the pitch darkness. The creatures scales glinted without a light source as it approached Darius. The dragon's soft nose reached out, and pushed against his chest almost gently. He resisted the urge to scream as the black beast sniffed his clothing. It seemed to nod before an all oppressing thunder-cloud of thought smacked into Darius' mind. His thoughts were quickly muddled as he could put up no defense, and he felt himself slipping into unconsciousness.

"_We are destined for great and terrible things, Darius of Gil'ead. We will either save them, or starve them. Either way eventually; All will kneel before the Four. "_


	3. Introductions

**Hey once again. Sorry for not updating in such a long time, but I've had a crazy last couple weeks. Anyway thanks for reading, and I do not own anything in this story besides my OC's.**

Darius cracked his drowsy eyes open; feeling like he had been run over by a chariot. He glanced around even though nothing could be seen in the pitch blackness that had engulfed the world. His head ached, and a spot in the center of his chest seared as if something had burned him. He placed his hands against the hard marble floor beneath him, and pushed up into a sitting position. _"Wait! A stone floor?!" _Darius' memories from earlier jolted back to him. He remembered the dragon, the moon disappearing, and the town but noting about what had happened after the creature had bumped him with its snout. _"How the hell did I get here..?"_ He wondered tapping a knuckle against the cold, smooth floor even though he couldn't actually see it. A new much more terrifying thought burrowed itself into his mind, _"And where is that dragon?"_

_"I-I'm right here."_ A deep smooth voice sounded in Darius' head as the dragon's mind brushed against his.

Darius gave a short yelp before quickly stifling it. "Where?" He asked again, this time aloud, still searching the shadows for the massive beast.

"_Keep your voice down.. You never know who might be listening."_ The dragon warned. Darius heard a loud scraping sound as something sharp drug across the hard floor. _"And I'm here."_ He said before puffing a quick burst of black, and white luminescent flame from his nostrils. Darius gasped as he took in his true surroundings. The dragon's head lay about fifteen feet away from him, and its body curled in a huge semi-circle around where Darius had been sleeping. The ground was a polished white marble that made it clear they were in a building of some sort. The reptile's wings arched overhead in a makeshift sort of hovel that blocked out all light.

_ "Wha-What's going on?"_ Darius tried to mentally project hoping the dragon would read his thoughts like earlier.

"_I have no idea... My head is splitting as if it has been hewn in two with a broadsword which makes me suspect we've been drugged."_ The dragon replied with an air of confidence which was odd considering the circumstances.

The man was feeling the inklings of panic beginning to set in. _"What are we going to do?! I have to get out of here! We must've been captured, or-"_

"_Calm down, human!"_ The dragon's mind hissed at him. He took a moment to compose his thoughts then continued, _"I'm not going anywhere, or doing anything until I at least know your name. Your mind may be unguarded, but I have no intention of invading your privacy more than I have to."_

Darius swallowed a growing lump in his throat. _"My name is Darius."_ He said before asking, _"What is yours?"_

"_My name is..." _The dragon paused as if he was having problems recalling his own name... _"My name is... Shruikan. Yes, that is right. I am Shruikan."_

"_Umm okay.."_ Darius replied a bit bewildered by his struggle to say his own name. _"So, if you don't know whats going on what exactly do you remember?"_

"_Not much." _Shruikan replied a lance of pain rippling through his skull. _"Mostly just shapes, and sounds."_

"_Okay what's the last thing you can remember?"_

"_I already said Darius. Nothing useful." _Shruikan sniped at Darius bitterly before cringing from a fresh wave of pain. _"It feels as if I am a newborn hatchling. I literally have no memories."_

"_Like at all? Nothing?"_ He asked bewildered.

"_I know my name, and that is all."_

"_Damn... Well, can you open up your wings so I can look around?" _Darius asked.

_"Of course, but you will not be able to see anything with your own eyes."_ Shruikan voiced as he peeled back his wings. The room was dark on the ground level, but an iron chandelier projected an eerie blue light that only light the roof of the colosseum-sized room. Darius couldn't see a single thing as the black dragon had said.

"_Can you help me out?"_ He asked hoping that Shruikan could spray some more fire. Shruikan had other ideas.

"_Yes.."_ Shruikan replied before his mind pressed against Darius'. Darius felt a piece of his mind being cooed out by the dragon's jagged, yet oddly empty consciousness. Suddenly, his vision blurred. The room came back into focus, but in a completely different way. Instead of everything being in color, or blacked out the room appeared as a gray and white counterpart. The soldier danced his eyes around the room taking in the sight of the strange vision.

"_Is this how you see everything?"_ Darius asked.

"_Only in the dark. Other than that I see essentially the same as you humans. Just better."_

_ "There." _He raised his arm to point at a door that looked big enough for Shruikan to squeeze through. The whole room actually seemed to be designed, as if, for a dragon. The two started forward. Both of them managed to wriggle through; though at one point Shruikan commented. _"I feel as if I should be much larger than I am."_

"_Good thing you aren't otherwise you would've never fit into this hallway." _Darius said thoughtfully as the two paced down a wide aisle lined with doors. None of them were large enough for Shruikan's bulk, except for one at the end. Lanterns lined the walls, but none of them were light which was odd. Then again this whole situation was. The pair reached the end of the hall after almost a minute of steady walking which showed the surprisingly length of the hallway. Shruikan suddenly let out a puff of flame, and smoke from between his teeth.

_"There is someone else behind this door."_ The dragon slowly hissed out. Darius' vision suddenly flickered, and returned to utter blackness.

"_What the hell?"_ He asked Shruikan wondering why he had taken back that gift of sight.

"_There is light also beyond this point. Besides I need all my senses fully running for whatever happens to be here."_

Darius shrugged his shoulders feeling the chain mail clink reassuringly beneath his tunic. He reached his hand out to grasp the bronze door handle, and crank it downwards. The door swung open, and light suddenly flooded into the hallway. Darius, and Shruikan both blinked a couple of times before the bright room came fully into view.

Darius didn't have time to react as a heavy paw slapped him aside. He skidded across the floor as a hulking white dragon roared at Shruikan. Shruikan reared up in response, and backed up a bit to avoid being swiped by the muscular beast. The white dragon gave another ear-splitting roar before a mind began to assail Shruikan's. The dark beast shook his head, and growled lowly; fighting off the mental barrage. Darius attempted to stand, but felt a sharp jab at his mind when he did that caused him to drop back down to his knees.

"_Who are you, and why are we here?!"_ Shruikan demanded of the other dragon.

"_You first."_ The other's mind growled out in a light, but aggressively male voice.

"_My name is Shruikan. That is Darius." _He said jerking his muzzle in the direction of the fallen human. The dragon seemed to relax slightly, but didn't answer Shruikan. This pause gave Darius a chance to observe the room. It appeared to be all white marble light by lanterns that burned with a brilliant white flame. The walls, and ceiling were decorated with gold inlays, but something else caught Darius' full attention.

A woman sat in the opposite corner of the room curled up in the fetal position covering her ears. Her boyishly short maroon hair was spiked up in odd places as if she had just woken up, but still her beauty was exquisite. She looked at the dragons and Darius, then slowly uncuffed her pointed ears. _"An elf!"_ Darius thought surprised. The white dragon suddenly whipped his head to stare at Darius.

A moment of tense silence ensued before the dragon said, _"Yes... My name is Bid'Daum, and that is Trinity... Now why are we here?"_


End file.
